More than 20 Oro Valley businesses have been granted permits to display A-frame signs since the Town Council passed a temporary measure removing a ban.
The council voted Sept. 21 to lift a ban on A-frame signs and relax guidelines for outdoor displays of merchandise.
Businesses that obtain a $50 permit from the town can display A-frame signs through Feb. 1, 2013.
Outdoor displays of merchandise had previously been allowed only if a commercial business obtained a $370 special-use permit, good for 60 days. The temporary ordinance waives permit fees.
A dozen or so businesses told the council at the Sept. 21 meeting that they wanted to use A-frame signs to promote their businesses.
Many said the signs would help direct customers to their sometimes-obstructed locations.
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Trouvaille Salon & Spa owner Jenny Ritchie spoke in favor of A-frame signs at last year's council meeting and obtained a permit.
Her sign advertises available appointments for manicures, haircuts and other salon services.
"I am really happy with my sign. We designed something that works really well for me and Oro Valley," Ritchie said. "We get quite a few walk-ins off the sign. It definitely helps bring people in."
The salon and spa is in the shopping center at the southeast corner of Oracle and Magee roads.
Signs must comply with requirements that limit height to 42 inches and area to 6 square feet. Copy and graphics on the sign also must be professionally designed.
Another requirement says signs must be located within 20 feet of a business's entry and be located on private property.
That restriction puts Sahuaro Cafe's A-frame sign in the parking lot.
"It's not really that helpful for us," Sahuaro Cafe owner Rebecca Ahlstrand said.
Ahlstrand, who bought the restaurant about a year ago, said she would prefer to exceed the 20-foot requirement and place her sign on private property elsewhere in the shopping center where her cafe is located.
Sahuaro Cafe is in the Safeway plaza at Rancho Vistoso Boulevard and Tangerine Road.
Before the temporary A-frame ordinance was passed, Ahlstrand had placed a sign near the entrance to the plaza. That sign, which she removed after learning it was banned, attracted five to 10 new customers a day, she said.
Council members did consider allowing A-frame signs in public rights-of-way, but concerns about clutter, safety and enforcement issues kept the Town Council from taking any action on that idea.
Town officials said the purpose of the temporary measure is for the signs to direct pedestrian traffic to businesses.
"The intent of the 20 feet from the business's entrance is to make the sign pedestrian-scale and viewable from inside the shopping center," said Paul Keesler, the town's interim development and infrastructure services director. "They are not intended to be read from the road."
Keesler added that town officials are not going out with measuring tape enforcing the 20-foot restriction.
Manager Angela Hansen said the A-frame sign placed on the sidewalk in front of Sequel's Upscale Resale Boutique, which is tucked inside the shopping plaza at the southwest corner of Oracle and Magee roads, draws new business to the clothing store.
People who frequent nearby Jerry Bob's or Walmart now know Sequel's also is located in the same shopping center thanks to the sign, Hansen said.
"It has been a godsend for us. I hope they extend it," she said of the temporary measure.
Tony Johnson, general manager of California Design Center/Studio C Interiors in Steam Pump Village, has been a supporter of the signs since the town allowed A-frames under a temporary sign program back in late 2010 and early 2011.
Johnson said he uses the A-frame sign so people know something is going on at the home furnishings store at 11085 N. Oracle Road.
A simple A-frame sign advertising three-cent black-and-white copies is in front of The UPS Store in the Rooney Ranch shopping center, which is at First Avenue and Oracle Road.
"It did make a big difference for us. It attracts customers," manager Ehab Hadi said of the UPS sign.
Other businesses with permits to display A-frame signs include Massage Envy, Koko FitClub, European Wax Center, Saffron Indian Bistro, Southwest Kitchen & Bath, Great Clips, Oro Valley Fitness 24, The Loop Taste of Chicago and Carrabba's Italian Grill.
Contact reporter Andrea Rivera at arivera@azstarnet.com or 807-8430.
